Svetlana Karadimova

Finance and Administration Manager

Svetlana joined Paines Plough from Nesta where she was Assistant Programme Manager for the £7-million Arts Impact Fund. The fund was the first of its kind to focus on the social, artistic and financial return created by arts and cultural organisations; it provides repayable finance between £150,000 and £600,000 to support organisations in achieving greater financial resilience and a positive impact on society. Svetlana managed part of Arts Impact Fund’s portfolio of investments and worked with new applicants to develop new investment proposals, guiding them through the due diligence process.

Svetlana initially trained in Performance Arts at Royal Central School of Speech & Drama and after dipping her toe in directing and dramaturgy, including a 3-month internship with renowned Danish theatre company Hotel Pro Forma, she decided to turn to arts and cultural management. She went on to complete a Master’s Degree from King's College London, where her research explored how arts organisations can become more resilient by engaging with their staff, partners, audiences and communities. She has been following the discourse on resilience in the arts ever since and is an avid fan of European and participatory theatre.